Royalty of Hogwarts
by MaxCullen-Whitlock
Summary: Harry's daughter is attending her 1st year at Hogwarts. What happens when she is in a different house then her family, the Weasley clan, Hogwart's unofficial royalty, and has to face their enemies alone? Or is she?
1. Friendship and Families

**Author's Note: This might not be the best but it's what I've got. I don't own any of the characters or places because they belong to the Great and Amazing J.K. Rowling (my idol) except for the character Anna. I made her up, even though she's based on a real person. This chapter's about Lily Potter (Harry's daughter, not his mum) on the train to Hogwarts and meeting a new friend, Anna. And just so you know, I'm from the US but I'm trying to use British words and spellings. If it's not correct, review and tell me. Read on, please!**

A light breeze whistled through King's Cross Station as the Potter family arrived, causing eleven year old Lily to wrap her sweater more tightly around herself. She shivered, and paused for a minute, contemplating what lay ahead for her. She hook herself back to reality and hurried to retrieve her trunk, cat, and owl from the family car, placing it on a trolley. "So Lily, you scared yet?" teased her fourteen year old brother James. "Almost everyone is for first year. Girls especially."

"Shut UP! I'm not scared and you know it," she shouted back.

"My, my. Aren't we touchy?" he laughed, before galloping off towards the barrier to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

"James Sirius Potter! Wait for the rest of your family," cried his mum, Ginny Potter. "Remember, no serious fighting out there. We can't keep on coming to Hogwarts every fortnight to tell you off." _Hogwarts._ Ever since she was little, the word sent thrills of excitement through Lily. And now she would be going there herself.

James responded to his mum with an unenthusiastic, "Sure, Mum." before bolting through the barrier. Albus, determined not to be outdone, sprinted through twice as fast. Lily sighed; her brothers were so immature sometimes. She supposed it came of being a boy. Then she jogged slowly, with dignity, onto the platform.

It was packed with students and families, all jostling for space, to get a good seat, to meet friends, or to say goodbye to someone. Eventually, Lily saw her cousins, the various branches of the Weasley tree, as her mum referred to them. Hugo, Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione's son, was Lily's age. He was entering Hogwarts for his first year too. But he wasn't the only one there. His older sister Rose was a third year, and with the seven children of her other uncles, some only along for the send-off, and Teddy Lupin, Lily's foster brother, and the Weasley grandparents, it was almost like a family reunion.

"Ready?" asked Hugo, clearly not ready himself.

"Ready as I'll ever be, and I won't get readier waiting," replied Lily saucily, trying to boost her confidence. Then they were recaptured by their parents.

"We'll write as often as you want us to, dear. Are you positive you'll be okay?"

"I'll be _fine_, Mum. Did you fuss like this when James and Al went for the first time, too?"

"Unfortunately she did. It's the only times I've seen her get emotional," laughed Harry Potter. "You'll do great. Just don't provoke Slytherins and don't take James too seriously." Lily allowed them one last hug before disentangling herself from her dad and leaping onto the train with her multiple family members.

James was nowhere to be seen, probably with his trouble-maker friends, already planning their next batch of mischief. Rose went to join the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Albus cleared his throat awkwardly, muttered, "Listen to Dad." and disappeared down the corridor.

Hugo looked around uncomfortably. "What d'you reckon we do?"

"I suppose we'd better get into a compartment. See any empty ones?" Lily looked as she spoke, and found one with only one occupant. "Reckon we try there?" she pointed to it.

"Guess we have to. There're no other options." And with that, they shuffled down the train.

Lily knocked on the door. "Can we sit here?"

The girl looked up from her book. She was actually kind of pretty, Hugo noted appreciatively, if you like waves of sandy hair partially covering greenish eyes, which he did. "Sure. Come right in. I'm Anna Timberlake, by the way."

"'Kay. I"m Lily, and this is my cousin Hugo." They sat down and got their trunks settled, when they noticed Anna staring at them, with wide-eyed amazement.

"Er, is that an _owl_?" she asked, wonder clear in her voice. Hugo's Spotted owl opened its eye critically as if to say, _who me_?

"Yep. Mine's Eglantine and his is Spots. And this cat is Ebony. You can tell who has more imagination," Lily sang. The barn owl tucked her head under her wing and the black cat purred. "Sorry. Eggy doesn't like Hugo. Anyway, my brothers each have an owl, too. James has a Snowy and Albus has a Great Horned." Whatever Anna had just opened her mouth to say was lost because at that moment, James burst through the compartment door.

"Hey Hugo, wanna come hang out with my friends? It's got to beat sitting with my sister," he teased loudly. Hugo gave himself one last longing look at Anna before allowing James to pull him away.

"So, are you one of those Pureblood families that some kids keep going on about?" asked Anna cautiously.

"Luckily enough, nope. Some parts of my family are, but my dad's mum was Muggle-born and my mum's family don't care about that. Who keeps going on about it?"

"Some very unpleasant looking people, I can tell you that," Anna shuddered. "Let's change the subject. What's your family like?"

"Besides amazing and large? Well, I have nine cousins, two brothers, five uncles, four aunts, two grandparents, and two family friends that we call aunt and uncle. That boy that was here before is my brother James. He is the annoying one. Albus is the quieter one. Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione are Hugo's parents. He has an older sister Rose who's Al's age. They are the closest to us. Uncle George and Aunt Angelina have two kids who are older. They're fun to be with. Uncle Percy, God he's boring, works in the Ministry of Magic, and Aunt Audrey have two daughters, one older, one younger. Uncle Charlie works with dragons in Romania. Uncle Bill, who's incredibly cool, and Aunt Fleur, who's French, have three older kids. 'Aunt' Luna is kinda crazy, and 'Uncle' Neville is obsessed with plants."

"Wow. Have you ever been to Hogwarts?" Anna looked like she was pleading the answer would be yes; she was clearly scared.

"No, sorry. But I've heard quite a lot about it. From my brothers and cousins,"

"Yeah, so, what've you heard?" she was hanging onto Lily's every word.

"Well, after we arrive, the first years, that's us, go in boats to the castle. Then we get Sorted-"

"Sorted? Sorted by what? For what?"

"Calm down. All you have to do is put on a hat and it Sorts you into a house depending on your characteristics. If you're brave, you go to Gryffindor, like my whole family. If you're smart and clever, you go to Ravenclaw. If you're loyal but not that brave, you go to Hufflepuff, but a whole load of people think they're all rubbish. If you're cunning and proud, you go to Slytherin. They like the whole blood purity thing."

"Hmm. What d'you reckon you'll be? I think I'm sure to be in Hufflepuff," sighed Anna.

"I dunno," shrugged Lily. "My family's in Gryffindor, but I'm not all that brave. Anyway, once you get Sorted, you live and have classes with your House. And if you want, you can try out for your House's Quidditch team."

"What's Quidditch?"

"What's Quidditch? Why, it's the best game ever invented. Even better then Muggle football. It's-"

The compartment door rattled. "Anything off the trolley, dears?" inquired the matronly woman.

"Yeah. I'll have- How hungry are you, Anna?"

She blushed and stuttered, "You don't have to-"

"Yes I do. You're my friend. Four Pumpkin Pasties and one box of Every-Flavoured Beans. Two of everything else, please." She counted out the money and returned with her treats. "Try these. They're really good, depending on what flavour you get. Some are, like, toffee or chocolate or lemon meringue, but some are gross, like dirt or cat-vomit. Er, I wouldn't eat that one if I was you. It's earwax." Anna looked revolted and spit it out. Lily introduced Anna to chocolate frog cards and various other sweets whilst explaining the game of Quidditch. When Anna thoroughly understood the game, talk turned to wands.

"Have you tried any spells yet?" asked Lily with an evil glint in her eye.

"No. I guess I'm afraid that something will go wrong."

"Oh. I have. I turned James' blankets pink. He chased me up and down the house, blasting smoke and sparks at me. Not the smartest, since we live in a partially wooden house. Mum yelled at him for that one. What's your wand? Can I see it?"

Anna drew her wand like one would draw a sword, and held it as carefully as one would hold a glass dragon. "It's birch and phoenix feather, thirteen inches."

Lily drew hers, but she drew it like a wand, and held it like a conductor's baton. "Mine's twelve and a half inches, ash and unicorn hair. Oh, I'm really excited now. I hope we're in the same House."

"Me, too. But I'm worried it might not be the right one." And with that ominous statement, the train jolted to a stop at Hosmeade Station.

**Another AN: Thanx for reading this far. I hope you like it. It isn't the best but I don't write for the critics. I write for myself, and my fans, if I have any. Hey, if you like it, tell me if I have fans or not. REVIEW! If you don't like it, then tell me how to make it better. I want to improve as a writer, and I'll gladly accept constructive criticism.**


	2. Lily's Surprises

**AN: Thanx to all of the people who put this story on your alert. Thanx to Skittles713 and other reviewers. This chapter is dedicated to you. I'm sorry for an earlier error I put in this chapter, saying that Prof. Vector was the astonomy teacher. It should read "Prof. Vector the Arithmancy teacher" Sorry about that one. Read on:**

"Firs' years over here," came a rough voice. It belonged to Hagrid, gamekeeper of Hogwarts. Lily clutched Anna's hand and tightened her hold on her trunk and owl cage. Anna held the cat carrier; inside, she could hear muffled purring from her crazy cat Ebony. "Five to a boat." The two girls ended up with Hugo and two other boys, one with gelled-up hair and the other with bulging pockets of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products. The moon was full and shone clearly over the lake. It was so peaceful, but Anna couldn't shake her feeling of apprehension. The turned a corner, and a magnificent castle came into view. It rose dark against the midnight blue sky, lights flickering in several windows. It was the most beautiful thing Anna had ever seen. "There she is!" called Hagrid over the awed murmurs.

The scared first years gathered in the Entrance Hall where they were met by Headmistress McGonagall, former Transfiguration teacher and head of Gryffindor House. "Welcome to Hogwarts. Our caretaker, Mr. Filch, will soon conduct you into the Great Hall, where you will be Sorted into Houses. Your House is like your family. You will live, sleep, eat, play Quidditch, and attend classes with them. Your triumphs will earn your House points, but if you break rules, they will lose points."

Anna was reminded of her fear when Argus Filch, an old, unhealthy looking man, shuffled in, muttering, "More young wizards to get in trouble." He raised his voice, "I'm here to make sure you little b******* stay out of trouble. Now, get into a straight line and walk into the hall." Well, that was reassuring. Anna was still nervous when they arrived, amidst applause from older students. She jostled into a position right behind Lily in the crowd that they had gathered into.

Sitting on a stool in front of the staff was a dirty old hat. Lily knew what it was, though she was surprised by its condition. A rip in its brim opened and it sang:

"_I am old in years and wise,_

_wiser then all of you here._

_That is why it's my job to sort you,_

_on day one of your first year._

_Some of you are Gryffindors,_

_brave in minds and hearts,_

_honorable heroes _

_for those of lesser starts._

_Others belong to Slytherin,_

_if you're cunning, sly and proud._

_Slippery and independent,_

_you think rules are for the lesser crowd._

_Some of you are Hufflepuffs,_

_the loyalist of friends._

_You have good hearts, but aren't as keen_

_to meet the martyr's end._

_The rest of you are Ravenclaws,_

_smart as you can be._

_Discoverers of knowledge,_

_wisdom, and destiny._

_So when you place me on your head,_

_know what your options are._

_This is when you will discover_

_who you truly are."_

"When I call your name, please step forth and place the Sorting Hat on your head. It will announce which House you shall be in. Burnley, Mathew," said Headmistress McGonagall severely. The boy with bulging pockets from Lily's boat stepped forward. The Hat very quickly decided: "GRYFFINDOR!"

Anna grew more and more nervous as she took in the faces of the upperclassmen, the floating candles, the empty gold plates, the dark, starry sky above. Finally, "Lily Potter." Lily shook her head defiantly, as if to say, _I'm not scared_, and stepped up to receive the Sorting Hat.

_Hm. I sense that you'd do well no matter what I say. You are loyal, brave, determined, proud, and smart. Or could be, given the right situation. You haven't really developed your personality yet. You have the opportunity to be a good member of any House, which makes you intriguing, but harder to Sort. You have a disregard for rules of any kind. I can sense great pride and wisdom in you. I suppose you are most like _"RAVENCLAW!" The Hat shouted the last word to the whole room, as Lily numbly removed it. She wasn't sure what to think. It was all she could do to stay on her feet and walk to the Ravenclaw table, where most people looked amazed, as if stunned that they had gotten a prize they were sure would go to Gryffindor.

Lily sat as if in a trance, as Anna joined her at the Ravenclaw table and Hugo join their family at Gryffindor. When the elaborately prepared meal appeared, she barely tasted it, even though it was as good as Grandmum Weasley's cooking. Anna tried to comfort her, soothing, teasing, and muttering condolences until it was time for the headmistress to welcome everyone to the new school year.

"Welcome, ladies, gentlemen, new students, to a new year at Hogwarts. I know you will all be on your best behavior." Her nostrils flared, as if daring someone to contradict her. "I would like to take this opportunity to welcome a few people to our staff. Our longtime Charms teacher, and head of Ravenclaw, Professor Flitwick, has retired due to old age. His replacement is former student Victoire Weasley. The new head of Ravenclaw is Professor Vector, the Arithmancy teacher. Our Transfiguration teacher, Professor Darkley, has been, ah, removed from the staff following a suspicious incident over the summer. He is being replaced by Geoffrey Smoothstone. A round of applause for our new staff members, please." A slight, blond witch and a young, rogue-ish, handsome wizard stood to accept the congratulations of most of the school, except a still stunned Lily.

Lily gasped, "Cousin Vicky is the Charms teacher? Why didn't anyone tell me this? This is too much for one day." And with that she dropped her head to her hands.

"Now, you are dismissed. First years, please follow your prefects."

"Ravenclaws, follow me," shouted Ravenclaw Prefect Terry Gordon over the ensuing din. The prefect led them through the hallways, past moving and talking paintings, up and down moving stairs, and finally to a door with a bronze eagle knocker. He banged it three times, and as he did so, explained that you had to answer the question correctly to get in.

"What lies at the beginning of time?" asked the knocker in a wise female voice.

"The letter _t_," whispered Anna sarcastically. Lily cracked a smile, which was the effect Anna was looking for.

"The beginning of everything, because there was no time before time," answered Terry.

"Good answer," approved the voice as the door slowly opened. The students flooded into a common room full of blue armchairs and sofas, with a fire crackling merrily on one side. Large windows showed the darkness outside and the domed ceiling was painted with stars.

The girl standing next to Terry said, "Dormitories are through that door and one of the spiral staircases. Girls' on the left, boys' on the right. Your trunks are already there. If you need anything, come to us. I'm Johanna Cole, and that thing over there is Terry Gordon." Terry waved and smiled wryly, eliciting a laugh from the first years, calmer now that they were overstuffed and tired.

Lily and Anna needed no further encouragement before racing up the stairs hung with blue and bronze tapestries. They claimed beds next to each other, and were unpacking as their three other roommates came in. Anna stayed up to talk to them, but Lily went to bed right away, and vaguely heard voices as she drifted of to sleep. It had been a hard day.

**AN: Thanx 4 reading this far. I know that it was kinda a long chapter, and it wasn't my favorite, but everything in it was stuff that needed to happen for the rest of the story to make sense. Most of you probably thought that Lily would be in Slytherin because the different house bit + the fact that Harry was almost in Slytherin and Albus was worried about it happening to him. But if I did that, it would be too predictable. So I gave it a twist. Evil Author Laugh Mwahaha! Please REVIEW! Fanfictions without reviews are movies without background music and theme songs. (For my musical connections, see my profile. I love playing background music and theme songs from movies. Especially... well, you'll see. XD)**


	3. Slugs and Ink

**AN: I know I said I would do a War of the Gods chapter next, but I was more inspired on this one so I decided to write another Royalty of Hogwarts chapter. Read and enjoy.**

Lily Potter woke up late and straggled down to breakfast, where most of the students already were. She sat in between Anna and a third year on the Quidditch team named Yolanda Bauer. "This year we're doing tryouts for a Seeker and two Chasers. Are either of you any good?"

"I've never tried," admitted Anna.

"I'm pretty good. But am I allowed to tryout?" asked Lily.

"Yeah. McGonagall changed the rules so that if a first year is good enough, they can play. And we need help. None of the people that aren't already on the team in the other years aren't any good, especially at Seeker. What position are you?"

"Mostly Keeper because I have to play Keeper with my brothers and cousins, but I'm not a bad Seeker." Yolanda nodded approvingly. Lily's 'Uncle' Neville, Professor Longbottom the Herbology teacher and head of Gryffindor, came around and passed out schedules. "Great. We have a double period of Potions with the Hufflepuffs first thing. Then we have Defense Against the Darks Arts with Professor Macmillan, head of Hufflepuff. He was in Dad's year. Every time they have a reunion for Dumbledore's Army, he's there, talking loudly about his ideas. Great wizard, though. Then cousin Vicky."

Lily nibbled on some toast at Anna's insistence that she eat. She was soon distracted by the arrival of the owls. With them came her mum's owl, Harpy. When Lily untied the letters tied with a blue ribbon, Harpy took off for the Gryffindor table and Hugo.

_Dearest Lily, _the letter read,

_Professor Longbottom sent us an owl last night to tell us about your Sorting. Don't worry about it too much, and don't listen to James; I know he'll make fun of you. We're proud of you no matter what. Dad and I don't care what House you're in; you'll always be our favourite daughter. I hear that Ravenclaw needs three Quidditch players. Why don't you tryout? James won't be laughing so hard when you beat him. Have fun, and good luck,_

_With love,_

_Mum_

The second one was thicker, in a bronze envelope. When Lily opened it, two sheets of parchment fell out. One was thick, folded, and blank. The other was a letter.

_Dear Lil, _it said,

_Don't worry. I was almost Sorted into Slytherin, but I asked the Sorting Hat to put me somewhere else. That's how I ended up in Gryffindor. Remember, it takes courage to be different. Being in Ravenclaw doesn't mean you're a coward. The other thing I wanted to write to you about it the second thing with this letter. It looks like a blank piece of parchment, but it's not. It was one of my most important tools when I was at school. If you tap it with your wand and say, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good" it will reveal a complete map of Hogwarts and everyone in it as they are at that moment. To make it blank again, tap it with your wand and say, "Mischief managed." I am giving this to you, as I have already given your brothers something from my school days. Albus has the only true Cloak of Invisibility in existence and James has my old Firebolt. While Albus's is technically the most valuable, you will get the most out of yours._

_Cheers,_

_Dad_

Lily stuffed all three pieces of parchment into her pocket just in time for the first bell. She and Anna had a long trek down to the dungeons. They didn't need to hurry however, because Professor Slughorn had not yet arrived. But when he did...

"You may enter the classroom. Take any seat you wish." They poured into the dungeon, each wanting to get a spot next to a friend. Lily and Anna managed to get seats at the same table, next to another girl and a boy. The room was roughly divided into Hufflepuff on one side and Ravenclaw on the other. Slughorn began the class by roll call. When he said a name that he recognized, he complimented that person admirably.

"Lily Potter. Ah, yes. I knew your parents. Ginny was a talented dueler and Harry, the Chosen One, was an exceptional potioneer. Must've gotten it from his mother." And he gave Lily such a dazzling smile that it was certain she would be one of his favorites. Her suspicions were confirmed when he constantly complemented her work on the simple potion to reduce swelling, completely ignoring Anna, who was doing just as well, and when, after class, he called her and Joshua Bobbins, heir to a large fortune made by a chain of apothecaries, to talk to him. In each of his hands he held a scroll with a green ribbon. "These are your invitations to the first meeting of the Slug Club. It is a little group of mine that the most talented, the elite, attend. Now, off with you, and I'm sure you won't forget the essay on simple potions that's due Monday." Lily groaned and ran off to her next class, which was Defense Against the Dark Arts, all the way on the other side of the school. She arrived five minutes after the bell rang.

Lily slumped panting into her seat next to Anna, who was forcing her tiredness to yield to excitement. This was a class she had been looking forward to. Professor Macmillan proved to be a good teacher, promising to be firm and interesting, although true to Lily's description, he liked to talk. And talk he did, about the basic defensive spells they'd be covering that year, and assigned them a chapter to read in _Basic Spells to Protect You From the Worst_ by Dennis Creevey that had to be summarized by Friday.

At lunch, Lily sat with her roommates, whom Anna introduced her to. There was Emilia Silver, a pretty witch from Wales, Desira Goldstein, daughter of Anthony Goldstein, a Ravenclaw in Lily's dad's year, and Viola Westerton, daughter of Lily's dad's ex-girlfriend, Cho Chang. Desira and Viola were comparing which boys they had flirted with, Emilia was day-dreaming, and Anna and Lily were having a very earnest discussion about the pros and cons of Muggle books. When the bell rang, Lily jumped up, determined not to be late and smashed into her brother Albus.

"Hey, Lily. How's your first day?"

"Fine, I guess, but-" Lily sighed mournfully.

"I know. James has been talking about you all day. I only just got him to shut up."

"What about me?"

"Well, about what happened to you. It's rather annoying and childish, really. But someone's started a rumour that you're not really our sister. Stupid of them. You look exactly like Mum."

"I know. But the people who say things like that usually aren't the smartest ones about."

"Don't worry about it, Lil. It'll blow over soon enough."

"Worry! Me? Whoever said I was worried?"

"I know you, and I know that look you get when you're upset. Looks like you're swallowing live bats." They both grimaced at the image, and then Albus asked, "So have you had our dearest cousin yet?"

"Nope. I'm on my way to her now. How 'bout you?"

"First thing this morning. I'll tell you, she's good."

"But why didn't I know anything about it? I mean, I knew she'd been doing intern work, but _teaching_?"

"We knew, James and I, but she made us promise not to tell anyone. Didn't want to get the family all worked up about it, I guess," admitted Albus. He glanced at his watch. "You'd better go. She doesn't play favorites."

"Oops! Nice talking to you, Al. See ya." Lily sprinted out of the nearly-empty Great Hall to the Charms classroom, skidding in just as the bell rang. Surprised by her sudden stop, Anna collided with her back.

"Good afternoon, girls. If you'll please sit down now," scolded Victoire, her tone as cold as her frosted platinum-blond hair. "We'll begin by taking out our wands." The whole class glanced around at their peers excitedly. Finally, this was what they'd all been waiting for: using their wands. Even the ones who, like Lily, had grown up in a Wizarding household, had been anticipating their first real spells for ages. "Now, first we will be learning a very basic charm, but before that, I think it's important that you all know how to hold a wand. If you point it at someone else, you'll have detention. We don't need anyone's face accidentally blown off." Despite being brilliantly beautiful, Victoire was serious and had grown up sooner than most nineteen-year-olds. She was also an amazingly talented witch. She went around correcting almost everyone, sniffing disdainfully when she came to Lily and Anna and didn't find anything to criticize. "Now, point your wands at only the inkwell in front of you and say '_Metamorphica kroma_'. Picture in your head a certain colour, and flick your wand at the inkwell." The room was filled with muttering and multicoloured smoke.

Lily imagined an unbroken plane of green, the color of her dad's and Al's eyes, and uttered the charm. She cautiously dipped her quill into the ink, and watched as ink that exact shade dripped onto _A Reference Book of Charms, Volume One_ by Ethelda Sparc. Victoire gave her an odd half-smile. Beside her, Anna's ink was a violent shade of cobalt. "Great job," cried Lily, elated that both she and her friend were successful. But Anna shook her head regretfully.

"I wanted it to be indigo, not bright, like this," she moaned. "I'm horrible at this."

"No, Anna. It's okay, look at the other students. Look at Hans Pfeiffer. His exploded. And Viola, hers is still black. Nothing happened. And Desira. Look at Desira. Hers hardened into asphalt or something. You're better then all of them." Anna grinned when she saw Joshua Bobbins, one of Slughorn's favorites, dancing around his flaming desk as Victoire shot a stream of water at it, soaking Joshua in the process.

"Order!" she shouted, sending up red and gold sparks from her wand, making Lily's stomach clench. "Everyone who succeeded, take your ink back to your common room. I want three paragraphs in it about the importance of charm pronunciation. Everyone else, throw yours away, and give me an essay on the same topic. Both are due next Wednesday. You are dismissed." The boys jumped up slower than the girls, taking time to peel their eyes off of her. When they were safely out of earshot, they began complimenting her beauty in lavish detail, leaving Lily rolling her eyes.

Over dinner, the atmosphere was much more subdued. Anna was copying passages out of _A History of Practical and Whimsical Charms_ by Desdemona Sparc for her three paragraphs. "Always start with the easiest," she joked as Lily took out _Basic Spells to Protect You From the Worst_ and read the chapter. Desira complained loudly about the amount of work she had, but when no one paid any attention, she huffily got to work on her Potions essay. Emilia and Viola had their heads bent low over parchment, quills scratching away.

"You think you've got homework?" snorted Yolanda. "I look back longingly at my first year. You have three essays. I have to write four feet of parchment on the International Statute of Security, diagram a hippogriff's wing in detail, including an explanation on how they fly, explain the twelve uses of dragon blood, and translate the first paragraph of _The World's Greatest Witches_ into ancient runes, all by Monday." Lily whistled sympathetically and filled her mouth with roast potatoes.

**AN: So ends chapter 3. Personally, that's my favorite that I've ever written. Please review. This story needs reviews like vampires need blood. Just FYI, I made up the words for the spell because I couldn't find the words for a colour-change charm anywhere. I got the _metamorphica_ part from Latin metamorphosis (change) and the _kroma_ part from Greek _kroma_ meaning color. It pretty much literally means "change color".**


	4. Darkness Rises

**AN: This one's a long one, because I couldn't figure out how to break it up. If I did, it was too short. And it was an important one, because this is when the main plot is introduced. This chapter is dedicated to Araleon who likes Hufflepuff. You will meet a Hufflepuff main-ish character in the next chapter. This one was too long already for me to fit him in.**

Lily woke up early to the bright light streaming into the window by her bed. "Who opened my bed curtains?" she asked groggily.

Anna smiled angelically, "I don't know. I wonder who did it. It's six-thirty, in case you're wondering."

Lily threw a pillow at Anna, who dodged it. "You're an evil little pixie!"

"Guilty," shrugged Anna, tossing the pillow back, hitting Lily in the face. She flung it back, missing and smacking a sleeping Emilia Silver in the head.

"Whaz goin on?" she complained before sliding back under the covers.

"Think we should head down to breakfast?" pondered Anna.

"Sure. I want to show you something on the way." The common room was empty except for Terry Gordon the Prefect, who was dozing off by the fireplace with a smudged essay in his lap. Lily took out the blank piece of parchment and her father's letter. "Look at this. It say we can see anyone, anywhere in the castle and on the grounds." She took out her wand and tapped it. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Lines spread across the surface, twisting and form little passages and rooms. Dots appeared, most not moving, with names next to them. In beautiful script on the front were the words, "Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs are proud to present the Marauders' Map."

"Look, Lily. There's us." Anna pointed at two dots "Lily Potter" and "Anna Timberlake" in a room labeled "Ravenclaw Common Room". "Wait, what's your brother doing over here? It's nowhere near Gryffindor Tower or Great Hall or the library." She pointed, frowning, at the dot labeled "James Potter" that was stationary outside the door.

"Let's check, shall we?" Lily opened the door and saw... nothing. Well, nothing out of the ordinary. She did not see her brother. Then she thought of something. "Anna, that letter said something about an Invisibility Cloak. What is it?"

"It says, 'Albus has the only true cloak of invisibility in existence.' But the map says James... Unless Albus let James borrow it for some reason."

"James, come out. We know you're there," called Lily. The air in front of her shimmered and he emerged, shaking his untidy black hair the way he did when he was trying to get a date.

"Hey, Lil. Who's your friend? Does she know?"

"Anna and yes. What are you doing here? Stalking me?"

"Yeah, I'm stalking you. No, I wanted to talk to you about something. I wanted to tell you that you can't try out for the Quidditch team, and the others agreed. You'd only get hurt playing against us."

"You mean you're afraid of competition. Don't worry; I will try out. Thanks for your concern, _Serious_." Lily's tone bit into him, and she took Anna by the arm and led her to breakfast. "Let's go, Anna. We don't need his advice."

Lily made up for her early morning in History of Magic, easily the most boring class she'd ever taken. Anna shook her awake in time for Herbology, where they learned about Devil's Snare, and its lookalike, the harmless Flitterbloom. At lunch, she diagrammed the differences between them. Afterwards, it was time for another highly anticipated class, Transfiguration.

Professor Smoothstone entered the classroom with a bow, drawing giggles from some of the girls. He was going to be to them what Victoire was to the boys; their biggest what-if. "Settle down, class. I'm going to introduce you to the basics of the art of Transfiguration. This is where you will learn some of your most important magic. There will be no messing around. Foolishness, including giggling and gossiping instead of working, will result in a punishment." His words, though light on the surface, were serious, and directed rather pointedly at the girls who had giggled when he bowed. He took a roll call, then explained what they were going to do. He gave them notes on what he called "basic" Transfiguration, which meant only slightly less complicated, and called on Lily to pass out toothpicks to every student.

He had chosen Lily because he could tell that she wouldn't giggle and flirt and try to suck up to him, and he was mostly right. Lily was too independent and focused to do that, but she couldn't pretend that she didn't note his appearance, and the fact that he was serious and scholarly instead of intentionally breaking the girls' hearts further endeared him to her. But she didn't love him in the silly, crush kind of way. She thought that she would love to have him as an older brother. James was too careless and unfocused to fit her ideal sibling's description. Besides he flirted with everything in a skirt, breaking more hearts then any other family member, except her dad, the famous Harry Potter, sought after by ladies young and old, and Louis Weasley, who was Victoire's part-Veela brother.

"Now, we're going to try to turn these into pins." He told them the words to say and how to move their wands. Anna and Viola were the only ones who had mastered it by the end. Several others, including Lily and Emilia, had gotten partial Transfiguration. They were assigned a chapter to read in _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_.

Lily was tired the next day, though excited that it was Friday. Lily found herself yawning in Defense Against the Dark Arts, where they learned the advantages and theory of Disarming Spells and were given no further homework, much to Anna's delight. After lunch, they went back to Charms, where Victoire had them practice the Colour-Change Charm again. At midnight, they met at the Astronomy Tower to study the stars and planets, and were given a star chart to label constellations on.

In the lazy afternoon, Lily went to the library to write a letter to her family. It would be hard, because it would mean thinking about the strange confrontation that morning.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_ she wrote, chewing on her quill,

_My first few days here weren't bad. I got a lot of homework but I finished most of it. This morning James tried to warn me away from trying out for the Quidditch team but I am anyway. The tryouts are on Thursday, and our "first" flying lesson is the day before. You know that I already know __how to fly. I have a friend named Anna who's in Ravenclaw with me. I'm also friendly with the other girls in our dormitory. I'm doing well in all of my classes, and having fun. Our Prefects have plans for tomorrow evening. We're having a big get-to-know-you party in the Common Room. The whole House is going to be there._

_Love from,_

_Lily_

At the party, Lily and Anna hung out with the Quidditch team, who treated Lily like one of them. She met some people and ate too many sweets. Terry Gordon acquired a party set of Weasley's Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs, which didn't go out until dawn. Half of the cake, which was in the shape of a large blue eagle, was enchanted. When eaten, whoever ate it momentarily turned into a blue-and-bronze eagle. Soon after, the person molted, leaving behind only the person and a few feathers made of bronze.

"I think Johanna was inspired by my Uncle George. He does this kind of thing all the time," remarked Lily.

"_Johanna_ did this?! But she's a _Prefect_! She's supposed to keep us under control. Like, rebelling is okay for us, but for a Prefect..." Anna exclaimed. The Prefects were very into the party, despite Anna's disbelief. Terry was the dancing and pulling pranks on first years while Johanna was watching with a smile. Anna looked around the room, "Uh oh. Those boys have been following us all night. They won't give up. Can we get out of here? I think we should explore. You know, with your map?"

"Anything to get out of dancing with them," Lily shuddered. "Let's go." They made their way around the edges of the crowd, skirting the main action. Hardly anyone spotted them slip out the door, which Lily counted as an enormous stroke of luck. "Where should we go?"

"Let's just wander around. We won't get lost, we have the map." As Lily looked at the map, she saw a collection of eleven dots in a part part of the castle where they shouldn't be. They were on the seventh floor, far from the library or the common rooms, and all seemed to be moving towards the same destination.

"Let's check this out. Could be interesting," decided Lily.

"They're probably up to no good. We might find something to liven up our stay here. I think it's getting a little boring." The sarcasm was thick on her words, but she clearly meant that she was game for any adventures Lily might cook up, plus plotting a few schemes of her own.

They followed the dots to a group of black-cloaked figures. They were wearing school robes, but the hoods were pulled up over their faces. Anna and Lily pulled up their hoods and got into the line. They came to a stop at a door next to a tapestry of a wizard trying to trolls ballet. "This room isn't on the map," whispered Lily, before filing into it. It was dimly lit by flickering candles. Roughly the size of a classroom, maybe a little smaller, it was circular and empty in the center. Shelves covered in dark cloth surrounded half of the wall and parchment charts and lists covered the other, except for a small chalkboard. One person was already there, writing on it.

"Welcome," he said, for it was definitely a male voice, "to the first meeting of our new society. Please sit in a circle. Stand up if you wish to speak. A few of you met here last year with Professor Darkley to discuss some of the same things that we will. The only change is that now, we have a purpose that we can act on. With a teacher in charge, we were limited by the rules of the school as to how we could apply our knowledge of the Dark Arts. But now we can unleash the forces on our enemies, the false royalty."

"Yes," agreed the girl on Lily's left. "We shall rid the school of their stain."

"Down with blood-traitors and Mudbloods!" cheered the boy on Anna's right. The leader waved for silence, though his mouth was twisted into a cruel sneer. With a sinking feeling, Lily realized who they were talking about. "We shall purge the school of their blighted presence and leave only the pure and worthy. They have usurped the positions of power that belong to us by birthright." He would've gone on longer, but the leader interrupted him.

"Yes, quite. To do this, we shall focus on individual students and discredit or remove them one by one, starting with the eldest and working down to the youngest. Any ideas are welcome, and the solutions do not have to be pain-free for the target." A person on the other side of the girl who had spoken stood up. "And you are?"

"Zachariah Flint. We disagree with you, and do not want to be any part of this organization any longer. We'll be leaving now."

"Who's we?" asked the leader, his voice dangerously quiet.

"Me," answered a girl who stood up one person away from him. "Vanessa Nigellus. I agree. We're leaving."

"I'm leaving too," said the boy who was in between the two deserters.

"Well, well, well. That is a surprise. I'd've expected the Malfoy heir to contribute to our gathering."

"I'm not who my father was. I won't do this," he responded. The trio turned and left, with swear words and hexes being shouted after them. In the confusion, Anna nodded to Lily. It was time to leave. No one noticed two figures creeping through the shadows of the darkened corridors. No one except Scopius Malfoy.

**AN: Dun dun dun... Thanks for reading the insanely long chapter. The plot has officially been shown to the general public. For those of you who missed it, a secret society is trying to rid the school of the Weasley clan. And as Lily is feuding with her family, it's all up to her to save them or destroy them. Please review. I'm feeling very lonely and unloved. sobbing I need a hug. Wah! And reviews. PLEASE! does Bambi eyes**


	5. What's In A Name?

**AN: Thank you, reviewers. One thing I would like to point out, in this chapter, I use "football" to refer to what us crazy Americans call soccer. It should really be football, and is so called everywhere else in the world. The character who plays football is what you would call a soccer player and what the rest of us call a footballer. He does not play the stupid American sport where you run around and show how "tough and manly" you are.**

"Are you spies?" snarled Scorpius menacingly. "We aren't interested. Being Slytherins does not make us evil conspirators."

"We're not spies, Snake-Boy. You wouldn't say that if you knew who we are."

"Oh, really? You think you're important. Well, hot-shot, you're not. We don't care about you, you don't care about us. Or the Weasleys. You could be jealous of one of them, I suppose. Jealously usually leads to revenge."

"Says the one whose family is the very definition of vengeful. And I do care about you and them, just as you care about me."

"You're wrong. I have no reason to care about or trust you. You probably are one of that group back there, a sneaky little spy with a secret agenda for the destruction of the family." He drew his wand, preparing to jinx her.

"And why would I want to betray them? I am one of them." Lily drew her wand.

"I'm not afraid of some silly girl who's in the House of _heroes_ with her perfect, famous family, popular for her name, not who she is. You just go around being stars because you are related to the infamous _St. Potter the Muggle-Lover, Savior of the World, the Chosen One, the Boy Who Lived_. I'm not interested."

"Don't talk to her like that!" yelled Anna, who was about to punch him in the face.

But Lily shrugged it off. "Nor am I." She threw back her hood. "But I don't like people threatening them. After all, I am a Potter."

"Lily, the different one. Sorry, didn't mean to offend," he apologized, although he didn't sound very contrite. "Well, I guess I can trust you, if you're not too annoying."

"Scorp, you lying git. You know you don't feel that way about them," reprimanded the girl.

"Shut up, Nessa. Okay, I don't hate them. So what?"

"So you shouldn't act like a lying hypocrite, that's what."

"She's right," commented the other guy dryly. "You do know that they aren't all silly and popular. And it's amazing that you two still bicker like an old couple."

"Zach, do me a favor and jump into the lake next time you get a chance, alright? And you two, Lily and her friend, don't bug us."

"Scorp, you can be such a Malfoy sometimes. Don't be so nasty to them. You don't even know anything about the other one. What's your name?"

"Anna. I'm in Ravenclaw with Lily."

"See, Scorp? It's not that hard. All you have to do is talk to people."

"But for him, that is a challenge," inserted Anna. Everyone laughed, even Scorpius, who failed miserably to glare at them.

"I think I'm gonna like you. See you at the meeting tomorrow night!" Nessa waved and skipped away, dragging the boys behind her.

The next day went too quickly for Lily. She and Anna woke up at eleven, took a walk around the lake, and ate lunch outside with Emilia, Viola, and Desira. The conversation soon turned to families. "My dad's an Auror." Anna opened her mouth to ask what an Auror was but Lily answered before she could fully form the question. "Mum's a Healer at St. Mungo's, the Wizarding hospital. We live outside London. In a city that big, there's plenty of opportunities for drama- and love." Desira was always the one who started conversations by talking about herself, especially when she could involve something about her clothes or boyfriends. Other than that, she was nice, despite the flirting, the smooth caramel curls, luminous brown eyes, and perfect tan that made her the subject of at least five boys' affections so far. After her normal prattle, that Lily could tune out pretty well by now, she asked, "How about you, Vi?"

"Well, my mum was a Ravenclaw and now she's a Quidditch coach for the Tutshill Tornados but my dad's a Muggle, so it get weird when we visit his family. We live kinda far away so it always surprises them how quickly we get to their house. My little brother Cedric is always bugging us about when he gets to go to Hogwarts and when he gets a wand. Dad never has a clue what he's asking about. No, Dez, I've never had a boyfriend. I've been asked twice before, and I turned down both of them." At Desira's prodding, she told the stories of both boys and why she wasn't interested in them. Though exotic and Oriental in appearance, Viola was Desira's opposite in personality. Shy and bookish, she never spoke except when asked a question. Desira was slightly jealous that more boys were interested in Viola than her, and that Viola returned the interest of Desira's favorite. She pointed at Emilia.

"I'm from a village in Wales. My whole large family are non-magic. My parents call me a gift from the heavens and my eight siblings call me various other less flattering things. Some of the other people think that I'm some kind of spirit or angel." She laughed, and it was a lovely clear sound, like the babbling of a brook and the song of a bird. "How about you guys?" Emilia was more sensitive to the people's feelings then anyone Lily knew. With her flowing silvery hair and the ethereal grace with which she held herself, she looked like the evil seductive sorceress who ensnared young men in Muggle legends. They knew that she was anything but seductive, though.

"Er..." Anna closed her eyes, thinking of what to say. "I live in London with my brother and sister-in-law and their son. They're really nice. My sister-in-law was my best friend." Desira rolled her eyes and waited for the more interesting stuff, but none came. Anna turned back to her drawing. "Ask Lil about her life. That'll be fun."

"Oh yeah. Fun. But you all know about my family," she protested.

"It'll be more interesting to hear about them from someone who lives with them though. The reporters don't know anything," insisted Desira.

"You got that right. We're swarmed with them, and no matter how often we tell them something, they get it wrong. We live out in the country near Godric's Hollow where we're near the rest of the family and have plenty of space for playing Quidditch. What else do you want to know? James is a git, Al's quiet but all brave and mischievous inside, Hugo's a trickster, Rose is an athlete who's actually smart, Dad's overprotective and Mum's the definition of 'tough love'. We're just like normal families except we have something else to cope with. Fame."

"I wouldn't mind," said Desira breathlessly. "I would love to be famous."

"Wait 'til you're married," laughed Lily. "Then you won't be as thrilled with it. I wouldn't give them up for the world, though. They're the best family I've ever met. But man, those damn reporters I could do without. One time, they showed up on my birthday party. The whole family was there and it ruined it for everyone. Grandmum Weasley was so mad. You've never heard yelling until you've heard here yelling. I swear you could here it five miles away."

"When is your birthday?" asked Anna. "I want to get you a present for being such a great friend."

"March twenty-sixth. What're all yours so we can do something special for everyone?"

"May eighth. Vi's January fifteenth, and Em's June twenty-first," reported Desira. "I don't know Anna's."

"November fifth. But look, speak of the devil and he shall appear. Or she, as the case may be." Anna pointed to two witches, one with a poisonous green quill and jeweled spectacles, the other younger with a shiny silver camera and matching glasses. "Reporters," she said grimly, as if it were her death sentence.

"Reporters," sighed Desira wonderously.

"Reporters," repeated Lily, spitting the word like an expletive.

"Hello, ladies," sang the reporter, flipping her rigid iron-gray curls over penciled in eyebrows. "Just the girls I wanted to talk to. I'm Rita Skeeter from the _Daily __Prophet_ and this is my daughter, Jackylin Skeeter from the Magical Photography Commission. Now, gather around so that we can get a picture of you." A blinding flash and a a few gold stars followed. "Lovely. Now, for the interview. Ms. Potter, how do you feel about being apart from your family in a different House?"

"I don't really care. I have friends here, and I still see my family every day. I don't mind being different." The quill scribbled across a notepad. _Lily Potter, age 11, is uncaring and cut off voluntarily from her family to face the difficulties that surely lie ahead._

"How are you coping with it? How did your family react?"

"I am only dealing with what every other student goes through their first year, with the added hardship of irritating reporters. As for my family, they will support me no matter what. My brothers and cousins will tease me, yes, but we are still family. We still love each other." _Her parents, the famous Harry and Ginny Potter, do not agree with her choice to be different from them. Her brothers and cousins are quite less then supportive of her abandonment of their legacy._

"How do you feel towards them right now?"

"Nothing has changed between us. They can be annoying, but older brothers and their cohorts are always annoying." _"I hate them," she confides angrily. "They are so annoying. I want to get away from them."_

"Now, you. What is it like being the friend of one so famous?"

"Er..." Desira was not so confident when confronted with questions like that. She chewed her lip. "We don't really talk much. Like, I don't know her. I hang out with Viola mostly. Lily doesn't share the same interests as me." That was an understatement.

"And you, how did she handle the news of her Sorting?"

"Er... well," Anna rolled her eyes up as if searching for answers there. "She didn't say anything about it and considers herself to be a loyal Ravenclaw."

"You, how does Lily act around you and around her family? Is she depressed, angry, or what?" asked Jackylin.

"She's always doing homework or reading when I see her," laughed Emilia coyly, happy for her successful chance to escape.

"You?" She pointed at Viola.

"Er, same goes for me." She looked at Emilia gratefully.

"Back to you, then."

"She's optimistic about getting all of our work done, and very helpful when she finishes before me. She's also, ah, ready for adventure. Remember when you claimed that it was getting too dull around here, Lil?"

"I'm going to kill you for saying that out loud. I've been very happy here over the past few days except when bothered by incessant reporters."

"So, anger, my dear, is what you show. But why are you angry?" Lily's rude response was luckily cut off by laughter as a football came soaring through the air and hit Rita Skeeter in the head. Her venomous quill sprayed green ink all over the new page in her notebook and her glasses fell off. Her daughter's camera smashed to the ground, exploding into a green-and-gold fireball and her perfect blond curls were covered in soot, making her look as old as her mother. A first year boy with shoulder-length brown hair and a relaxed, cheerful smile ran over.

"Sorry if I interrupted a press conference, Lily, but I couldn't resist."

"How do you know my name?"

"Everyone does. You're famous, but I didn't figure you liked paparazzi stalkers either. Name's Seth. Bye!" He ran off gracefully, leaving Lily wondering why he brought a football to Hogwarts, where the primary sport was Quidditch. Rita and Jackylin stalked off in a huff, Jackylin giving her a nasty look over her shoulder. Am I going to have to put up with seven years of this? thought Lily.

**AN: Wow. What started out as one will now be three. I had originally intended for this chapter, last chapter, and the Slug Club meeting in next chapter to be together, but I got carried away with the Skeeters's interview, developing Em, Vi, and Dez's personalities, and the evil meeting where Scorp and his friends started a revolt. Review. I've ran out of creative ways to beg so just do it! Also, for those of you who don't know, Anna's birthday is symbolic. Look up November 5th to find out what I mean. It'll make sense in later stories. Sorry 'bout the length. Please REVIEW!**

**Your desperate author,**

**Max**


	6. Snake Eyes

Lily barely had time to change out of her shorts and short-sleeved blouse into school robes to get to the dungeon for Slughorn's meeting on time. Everyone else was already there, sitting expectantly in a ring of chairs around a squashy armchair occupied by Professor Slughorn, who was absentmindedly devouring crystallized pineapple from a multi-faceted glass dish. "Splendid," he cried out upon seeing her. "Now everyone's here, so let's introduce ourselves. Francis, you know the drill. Tell them who you are, then do roll call."

"OK," replied a Gryffindor girl with a thick black braid. "I'm 'France' Jordon. My dad's Lee Jordon and my mum's Katie Bell. I'm a seventh year. Dad's a Quidditch commentator and wireless show host. Mum played Quidditch professionally and writes books about Quidditch and recent history. Er, I'm on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Keeper. Now, as anyone who's been here before should know, I'll call everyone's name and you say something when I call you." She cleared her throat and read off a long scroll of parchment. Once that was done, she explained what they would be doing all year. It all sounded very dull to Lily, who met famous people almost every day of her life. She wished for a book in her hands so that she could ignore the speeches Slughorn was making after the introduction.

"Right you are, Francis. It will be loads of fun. Now off to bed with you," cried a jovial Slughorn. They filed out into the darkened corridor. Lily started off to her room but a hand on her shoulder made her stop. It was the Slytherin trio.

"Hey, Lily. How goes it?" That was Nessa.

"It goes good," she laughed. "And how are you, Zach, Scorp?" They looked surprised, but answered that they were well, thank you. The Weasley clan looked more than surprised. Their expressions ranged from shocked to scandalized. Dominique, the oldest present, looked as if she was afraid that either she or Lily were losing losing their mind, with her pale hair, naturally highlighted dark red streaming back over her shoulders. She was as pretty as Victoire in her own way with her father's smile, and a whole lot less snobbish. She would accept Lily's new friendships with the most tact, even if she didn't approve. Her brother Louis, with deep blue eyes and silver-and-gold hair both shared by his eldest sister, not the middle one, had the same expression that Victoire would've had: absolutely disgusted.

Molly, the slightly plump redhead, shook her head reprovingly, looking every bit the sweet, motherly girl she was. Her cousin Fred grinned evilly, most likely planning his next trick on Lily. The redheaded rogue would no doubt get her for being friends with what he fondly termed "those slimy Slytherin gits". His feisty sister Roxanne shook her black braid as she nodded saucily as she read the twinkle in his blue eyes, identical to her own. The two were partners in crime, despite the four years that separated them. Rose looked ready to explode, with her face as red as her volumous hair. Lily hoped that she wouldn't start yelling, even knowing her cousin's lack of patience, because she had inherited a lot of volume from Grandmum Weasley. She wouldn't even have done to the meetings of her own free will, but James always ratted her schedule to Slughorn so that she had no excuses to miss it. His feeling was, "If I have to go, so does she." Her feelings were rather nasty swear words that shouldn't be repeated. Hugo looked bemused, as if he could not fathom her strange behavior of consorting with "the enemy".

James was livid, his incessant teasing finally halted in his rage, black hair in an untidy wreath above his head. Albus shrugged apologetically, as if to say "Well, you brought it on yourself". Lily scowled at James before throwing herself animatedly into a discussion about the best brooms with the Slytherins. Zach blinked his golden amber eyes curiously. Why would a _Potter_, enemy of Slytherins and a tight-knit family member, ignore her clan for their enemy? It didn't make sense. Especially since Scorpius Malfoy was a slightly more handsome, longer-haired mirror image of his father, Harry Potter's nemesis. "Zach? Zach? What's your opinion. Answer the question." The sound of Nessa's voice jolted him out of his reverie.

"Oh, sorry. I was, er, thinking about something."

Nessa snorted. "Like what? Is there anything more important then talking to your friends? I, for one, take that as an insult."

"There's plenty more important, if strange things are going on. And I thought that blonds were supposed to be the stupid, shallow ones, not what ever you called mud-colored-haired people."

"It's not mud," she replied patiently, as if she had explained this many times before. "It's _chocolate_. That's quite a difference."

"Oh, I see. People with _chocolate_ heads are really sweet but don't have any brains."

"And you accuse _me_ of squabbling with her like an old couple! Just look at yourself," interrupted Scorpius. "She asked you which of the Firebolt series you think is the best. Any thoughts?"

"The newest model that just came out this year. It's the Firebolt Griffin."

"Psh. The Griffin's too flashy to be a good broom for Quidditch. For trick riding, maybe," decided Nessa. "A Beater needs a good sturdy broom, very fast and maneuverable. But mainly strong. Like the Firebolt Hawk. And Lily, in case you're wondering, Zach and I are Slytherin's Beaters. Scorp is the Seeker."

"Personally, I like the Eagle. It's more old-style, like the first Firebolt, with more speed than any of the newer ones," said Scorpius

"Except the Thunderbird. It came out a few years ago and hardly anyone has it, partly because it's really expensive, but mostly because it takes a smart, daring, skilled player to ride one. If I played well enough, that's what I'd want. Yes, Scorpius, the Griffin's faster, but the Thunderbird is better if you know how to use it."

"But the Phoenix-"

"Scorp, the Phoenix is great over long distance, for traveling and such, but for a match, I'd rather have a Thunderbird." When they saw her talking so comfortably with the Slytherins, Lily's family became, if possible, even more astonished. A few of them regarded it as nothing less than a betrayal of the worst sort.

"Traitor," whispered James. "Snake." He raised his voice until Lily and the trio could hear it as well, repeating the same words. Louis and the others took it up like a chant. "Traitor. Snake." Lily's bright brown eyes held James' pale blue ones. With a loud "Hmph!" she turned on her heels and jogged back to her dormitory. Her roommates were still out at dinner, so Lily threw herself onto her bed without taking off her robes, shutting the dark blue velvet curtains, and curled up around where a purring Ebony lay. The last thing she thought about was James' voice, saying over and over, "Traitor, traitor, traitor..."


	7. Flying Above Lies

Monday morning at breakfast brought several surprises for both Lily and Anna. First, Lily actually woke up on time of her own accord. While she was polishing off her third plate of sausage, the owls flew in with the mail. Lily's barn owl Eglantine and her mum's Harpy flew in together, Harpy carrying a newspaper and a book and Eglantine carrying three letters. The first letter was addressed to Anna, but when she read it, tears came to her eyes and she yanked it out of sight. "What'd it say?" asked Lily, worried about her friend. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing. Everything's fine." But Lily was not convinced. "C'mon. Just read your letter." It was from Lily's "Aunt" Luna. _Dear Lils,_

_Hope you're well. Rolf and I have been in Iceland, looking for evidence of a new rare creature. Your Aunt Hermione scoffs, but we have found something. Congratulations on making Ravenclaw. It's my old House, you know. I look forward to seeing you this summer when we return. Have fun, and don't let being wise make you skeptical. You have always been my favorite of the Weasley clan children._

_Yours,_

_Aunt Luna_

The third letter was from Lily's parents. _Our daughter,_

_Look at this paper! Ms. Skeeter's article about us is an absolute disgrace. It's not your fault, of course. She was always slandering us when we were at school. Don't get too upset about it. No one believes a word she writes anymore. Not since Hermione published her book, Published Lies: The Truth Behind Rita's Rubbish, which was in retaliation for her biography of Professor Dumbledore and the slanderous articles about her and Dad. Your aunt has a vengeful streak. So read the book, and don't worry about your House. That's not what really matters. And don't listen to James. We'll support you if you decide you want to play Quidditch. The article about you is on page five._

_Love,_

_Mum and Dad_

Lily looked at the book. It was Aunt Hermione's _Published Lies_. Then she unrolled the _Daily Prophet_and turned to page five, where large, bold print declared "Youngest Potter Rebels Against Legacy, Family Furious!" While the Weasley clan certainly were not happy, especially after what had happened the night before, furious was a bit of an overstatement. Quickly, Anna skimmed the article. "Look at this rubbish. It's absurd. We never said these things.

'_Lily Potter, age eleven, is uncaring and voluntarily cut off from her family to face the difficulties that surely lie ahead. She has chosen to be a member of Ravenclaw House, instead of in Gryffindor, where her famous parents were. They do not agree with her choice to be different from them, and her brothers and many cousins are less than supportive of what they feel is "abandonment of their legacy." Inside sources claim that the infamous Hogwarts Sorting Hat can be influenced by the individual's decision, such as a student who the Hat felt was destined for Gryffindor telling it to place her in, say, Ravenclaw. A close friend confides that Lily "doesn't care about Gryffindor" and that "she would much rather be a Ravenclaw anyway."_ 'That's not true!"

'_Understanding Lily's drastic measures is difficult, but I believe much of it lies in something she told me. "I hate them. (her family) I wanted to get away from them." But she is not taking the separation well. Another close friend revealed that she is "not interested in anything anytime." She spends her time on schoolwork, no doubt trying to block out the pain and suffering she is, and will have to, endure._'" The article waxed on in that vein for a whole page, painting Lily as a depressed, desperate black sheep, escaping the oppression of her tormenting clan. To Lily, Anna, and anyone who knew them, it was recognized as ridiculous untruth. Emilia, Viola, and Desira came to apologize for whatever flippant words had been misquoted and used against her. At the Gryffindor table, the Weasley clan was fuming. They could hardly believe some of the rubbish Rita Skeeter had written about them.

Lily reckoned later that she only managed to survive the next four days due to the upcoming Quidditch tryouts, which Lily was extremely excited for. In the late afternoon on Wednesday, they had flying lessons with the Hufflepuffs. The flying teacher and referee, Gwenog Jones, had placed brooms on the ground for everyone. "Everyone stand next to a broom. Hold your wand hand over it, and say 'Up'." The students hurried to do as she was told. Lily's broom jumped into her hand at her first command, but only hers and three others did. One was Emilia, one was Hans Pfieffer, the Ravenclaw boy whose ink exploded, and the other was- "Mr. Elliot, you have a fine grip. You're a natural." The boy looked up. He was a Hufflepuff, with shoulder-length hair, an easy smile, and cheerful green eyes which, when he saw her looking, winked at her. Lily's heart skipped a beat. It was Seth.

Anna's broom hovered about halfway up, not seeming sure if she would be able to ride it or not. Eventually it rose, as did everyone else's. Once they all had a broom in their hands, Ms. Jones coached them through mounting and gripping a broom, although Lily already knew how to do both. When they were finally allowed to fly, Lily spent most of her time coaching Anna, who was not a natural flyer, but by no means the worst in the class. That was Viola, whose broom refused to turn or go in a straight line or go faster then the flying equivalent of walking.

When the much awaited tryouts finally came, Lily was ready. True, she was riding an old Cleansweep Eleven, but she was good, and even an old, beat-up school broom can't make a naturally talented flier look bad. The Ravenclaw captain, a sixth year named Blake Collins, divided everyone into groups of seven to fly around the pitch. From there, he further divided each group into two parts: those who were decent fliers, and those who weren't. The latter were asked to step out of the tryouts. Of the twenty-one people, mostly first years, who tried out, only eight of them continued; they were Lily, Emilia, Hans Pfeiffer, Desira, two third year boys, a sullen seventh year, and a preppy, flirting fourth year girl who was trying to catch Blake's eye and failing. The seventh year appeared to be arguing with Blake. "I was on the team last year. I should get on automatically, like Yolanda, Jo, and Simon," he insisted.

"Yes, but you also disrupted our team with your selfishness. You're the reason we didn't win the Cup. Because you were sulking and threw the game because we didn't all bow down in front of you, because I refused to let you run things, and because Jo refused to go out with you. Someone that immature is a liability to the team. And your skills are not a huge asset. If we can't find a better Seeker, then you can come back onto the team, but if we can..." Blake shrugged. "We'll live without you. Now go back to the sidelines. We're doing Chaser tryouts first." He directed all prospective Chasers to get in the air and begin tossing a Quaffle back and forth between them as Yolanda watched them. They passed it quicker and quicker while doing more complex formations. Blake blew his whistle. "Bradley, Chambers, off." The two third year boys dismounted and walked back to the broom shed. "You three, get in a line and try to score on Jo." Johanna the Prefect waved from the goal hoops.

Desira went first. She missed. Emilia went next. She scored. Hans scored, Desira scored, Emilia scored, Hans missed, Desira scored. It went on like that until everyone had five shots. Emilia made all of hers, and Hans and Desira missed one each. Emilia was given a spot on the team, and Hans and Desira were tested with the Bludgers. Simon Davies, a fourth year Beater, and Blake, the other Beater, shot Bludgers at them. Hans was more adept at dodging, so he also made the team. Then it was time for the Seeker tryouts.

The three candidates were Lily, Derrick McDogal, the sullen seventh year, and Gilda Faire, the pretty fourth year. Blake explained that he would release the Snitch, and whoever caught it automatically made the team. He held up the fluttering gold ball in his fist, and opened his fingers. Immediately, Gilda shot after it. The rest of the team flew around, blocking and trying to distract the three possible Seekers. She pulled up short. She'd lost the Snitch. Lily and Derrick hovered around. Derrick was following Lily's movements with his eyes, trying to use her to find the Snitch and beat her to it. She saw it, down by where the spectators were standing. He saw her eyes flick in that direction, and dove. She pulled up next to him, slowly using her broom to force his of course, putting her in between him and the Snitch. Frustrated, he swung the end of his broom around, crashing it into hers, sending her spiraling downward. She spun around and began climbing. The Snitch had vanished. Derrick had been partially successful, but now Lily knew what his strategy was.

She glanced over towards the goal posts, where the Snitch wasn't, because she had just seen it near Jo's ankle. Lily shot over to the end of the field, going into a very convincing and impressive dive. Derrick took the bait, following her and gradually drawing level on his own faster Nimbus 2018, the newest in the Nimbus series. At the last minute, just as he overtook her, she pulled out of the dive and raced to the other side of the pitch, where the Snitch was lingering near Yolanda's elbow. A dull crunch behind her told Lily that Derrick had crashed. She swooped down and caught it, causing the team to erupt with cheers. Blake even thanked her for giving him the opportunity to get rid of Derrick. The others congratulated her, but afterwards, Jo commented, "You need a new broom, girl." So Lily wrote to her parents, asking for an at least halfway decent broom.


	8. Worst Ever Quidditch Practice

**AN: Sorry about the lateness of my updating. This is a long, action-y chapter that can't be broken up. I would also like to thank some reviewers, even though I may or may not have thanked you already(my memory sucks when it comes to this stuff): Skittles713, .girl, cwissy-wissy, cyius black (who reviewes TWICE!), and Araleon. People who added to Favs or Alert: too many to count. I thank you all. Chocolate Frogs to you! -randomness- Anyway, I have six reviews and I'd like to make it to ten with this and the next chapter, which is being written as you read this. SO, without further ado, I present...**

**Worst Ever Quidditch Practice**

Lily did not have to wait long for her parents' reply. At breakfast that Saturday, while she was reading _Published Lies_ and Anna was working on an essay about the uses of making objects fly, set by Victoire which Lily had already finished, three owls came hurdling down, narrowly missing Lily's head with their large package. "I don't see how you finished this already. Can I look over what you've written to- what the hell is that?" Anna jumped a foot in the air when an owl whistled past her head.

"Probably my new broom. Here's the letter. '_Dear Lily,_

_A half-way decent broom! Why would you only want something half-way decent? I understand you're trying to be modest and not ask too much of us, but please! We're your parents. It's our job to be indulgent to our youngest child and only daughter. Congratulations on making the team. We're so proud of you. And as a first-year Seeker, too, just like your father. I also played Seeker when he was suspended from the team during his fifth year. We'll try to come see your first game, and definitely the last game of the season, Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw. Have fun, and don't open your gift in the Great Hall._

_Love,_

_Mum and Dad_

"C'mon, Anna. Let's go unwrap this thing. Then we'll tell Blake that I can practice tonight." For that night was the first Quidditch practice of the season, and Blake had booked the pitch for Ravenclaw. Anna cast a sad glance at her half-eaten muffin and incomplete essay, but followed Lily anyway. "Come _on_. You can finish that later. You can copy mine, I swear." Shoving her quill in her bag, she ran out after Lily's rapidly retreating form. Lily was waiting for her at the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower, tapping her foot impatiently before raising the bronze knocker.

"Who is it that is stronger than man, yet has no body, older than land, yet was not born, wider than the earth, yet has no shape, and is neither seen nor can see, yet it is felt by all?" asked the knocker.

"Why did it have to pick a hard one today?" cried Lily desperately.

"It's designed so you have to think about it," said Anna wisely.

Lily growled, "Shut up," but the knocker nodded approvingly. "Let's see. Stronger than man, that could mean a lot of things..."

"Like this damn knocker's sexist. Stronger than man, honestly. What about women?"

"Shut up, would you? I'm thinking," said Lily.

"So'm I. Sounds like it could be a sorrow. You can't see it, it can't see you. And the width of the spread of its devastation can be wider than the earth. Does that make sense?" Anna asked the knocker.

"Unusual reasoning..." it answered, as Lily shouted, "I've got it. It's the wind." The door swung open, and they leaped through it before they could hear the knocker compliment them. Bypassing the expansive bookcases they had spent hours browsing and the spectacular view of the mountains in front of a clear azure sky, Lily took the steps two at a time to their airy dormitory. The whole perimeter of the circular room were great arched windows except the small wooden door leading in from the spiral staircase. If you looked out from the door, you could see across to the boys' spiral staircase and the doors of their dormitories. Lily plopped the parcel on her bed. "Let's open it!"

They tore the paper open, revealing a broomstick. A catalog called _Witch Broomstick_ fell out. While Anna grabbed the catalog, Lily clutched the broom as if to make sure it was real. "A Firebolt _Thunderbird_! Wow. I can't believe it. This is the best broom in the world. It's exactly what I wanted."

"I'll take your word for it,"muttered Anna, engrossed in the catalog. "I wouldn't know one broom from the next."

"It has really fast acceleration, and it's supposed to be incredibly light and maneuverable."

"It says here, 'The Firebolt Thunderbird is the fastest broom available excluding the newest one, the Firebolt Griffin. The handle is ash with a diamond-hard polish, and each twig of the tail is hand-picked and perfected for aerodynamics. It has perfect balance and will turn on a dime at the slightest thought. Acceleration is from naught to two hundred miles per hour in ten seconds. Now available in four color schemes: Gryffindor (red polish with gold lettering), Slytherin (silver with green), Ravenclaw (bronze with blue), or Hufflepuff (gold with black) each with a raven feather in the tail.' Whew. That's pretty cool." Lily was examining it in detail, from the pitch black feather to the brilliant sapphire blue "Firebolt Thunderbird" and the registration number to the aerodynamic tail to the bronze-finished handle. Even Anna, who knew nothing about brooms, was impressed.

The rest of the day was spent outside by the lake, doing homework, writing essays, and watching Scorpius and his friends tease the giant squid. Just before three, Lily left to get her Quidditch robes for the practice. She said goodbye to Anna, who would be watching in the stands. When Lily arrived in the changing room, everyone else was already there, except for Blake, who came in from the captain's office.

"Excellent. Now, for those of you who are new, I am trying to develop a team, not just a group of players. You all may not necessarily be the most talented, but you fit the best with our strategies."

"Way to keep up our confidence, Blake," muttered Johanna from behind him.

"Ignore her," he laughed. "Now, let's go."

"Wait a minute," said the other Beater, Simon Davies. "Is that a _Firebolt_?"

"That's more than just a Firebolt, Davies. That's the Thunderbird. We'll win for sure with one of those as our Seeker. We'll steal the title from Gryffindor!" yelled Blake. Simon, Yolanda, and Jo cheered. Still cheering, they paraded out onto the pitch, Simon and Blake hauling the chest that contained the balls. When they reached the center, however, their grins faded.

"Ah, I was wondering where that got to," remarked France Jordan, Gryffindor Captain.

"What the hell are you doing here?" asked Blake, angry at the invasion.

"We booked the pitch. Simple as that."

"But so did we. And no one had signed up before us."

"Hm. Us either."

"So some git erased one of us from the sign-up chart. How do we figure out who did it?"

"Tsk. Overthinking as usual. We don't need to figure anything out. The pitch's big for both teams. We just practice as normal and ignore each other."

"There's a problem though: only one Quaffle."

"There's an extra in Jones' office. I'll go get it, shall I?" So the two teams each claimed a side, a Bludger, and a Quaffle. Blake and Simon hit the Bludger back and forth in the air. Hans, Yolanda, and Emilia on her new Nimbus Two Thousand and Five passed the Quaffle and each tried to score on Jo in groups of two. Whoever was not shooting was also throwing Muggle golf balls at Lily, and she caught every one of them. Then she was almost knocked off her broom. A Bludger came soaring from the other end of the pitch and would've knocked her out if Lily had not heard Emilia scream and rolled over at the last second. Furious, Blake shot it back so hard that it hit Gryffindor reserve Seeker Colin Creevey's broom, breaking off some of the twigs. James retaliated by throwing the tennis ball he had bewitched to fly away from him way over towards where Lily was, and knocked her out of the way as he flew by.

As she plummeted to the ground, dizzy and barely conscious, the Ravenclaw team was in uproar. Anna ran onto the pitch to catch Lily, and Jo, trying to live up to her Prefect badge, was trying to calm Blake down. He refused to be calmed. "That was a dangerous, unprovoked attack on an innocent bystander. Not to mention she's our only Seeker and we need her." Blake was ranting at the Gryffindors, furious at them and at himself. "You apologize for that right now or... or..." He was so angry that he couldn't speak anymore.

"Or I'll take ten points from Gryffindor for unnecessary violent conduct," finished Jo smoothly.

"So Lily has you lot to stick up for her. That's why you're not in Gryffindor, 'cause you're a coward," taunted James. Lily mounted her broom, drawing her wand.

"Lily, no! You'll get hurt. You probably have a concussion and he knows way more magic then you." But Anna's plea went unheard by Lily, who was muttering, "Call me coward, will you?", eyes focused on her irate brother. She flew up next to Blake. "Let me take care of this."

James hurled a jinx at her, which she dodged as easily as if it had been a particularly slow Bludger. "Expelliarmus!" Her spell hit him instead of his wand, and he was forced off his broom. The Captain flew in to catch him, and the rest of the team followed. Rose was really angry now, hair billowing around her like a red storm cloud. Fred and Roxanne, no longer smiling, held their Beater's bats up ominously. Dominique shook her head, as if to say "This has gone far enough." Albus looked from his brother to his sister as though he couldn't understand either.

"Rictusempra!"

"Protego," Jo flicked her wand calmly, and the Tickling Charm ricocheted back at Rose. She deflected it back towards Jo, who began laughing so hard she could barely grip her broomstick. Chaos erupted as the air was filled with shouts of various jinxes and charms. Soon, everyone was involved, even Anna and Jo, who had been uncharmed by Yolanda. Lily Disarmed Albus and Fred before having to preform a Shield Charm, which she had never done before. The Beaters were hitting Bludgers at the other team, and the Quaffle had a spell on it that made it hot to the touch and shot around almost as fast as the Bludgers. Even France and Dominique, who was Head Girl, were dueling with Jo and Yolanda. With a well-placed Disarming charm, Roxanne had shattered her Shield, and her wand flew out of her hand. Standing on her broom, Lily stretched out to grab it. But as she did, James hit her with a hex that made her legs go into a fast and complicated tapdance. Unable to control her feet, she slid off her broom, which hovered in the air without her. "Finite," said Anna firmly. She reached up and, being rather taller than Lily, plucked her broom out of the air. Lily thanked her and swung onto it, streaking towards James, who was dueling with Emilia.

She had only been meaning to Disarm him, but when he Stunned Emilia, her temper boiled over. "Petrificus Totalus!" His arms snapped to his side and his legs together. His face was frozen in shock. Satisfied, Lily left him being held up by Dominique and Fred. The blood was pounding in her ears, and her heart was beating so loudly that she didn't notice that everyone had gone strangely quiet. Inexorably, purposefully, Professor McGonagall strode onto the pitch, her mouth so thin you could hardly see it, trembling with rage, flanked by Professors Longbottom and Vector, the Heads of their Houses. Neville was still in the soiled apron he wore for Herbology and Professor Vector, a dark-haired, tanned witch was wearing her dress robes backwards, as if she had been interrupted while getting dressed for dinner. Behind the shocked Heads was Madame Pomfrey, surveying the scene with disdain for "dangerous sports".

Lily glanced around, and understood the looks on their faces at what they saw. Emilia was lying on the ground in a tangled heap. James was being held up by Dominique, whose face resembled a cruel bird's from her Veela heritage and was holding a handful of fire, and Fred, who was sporting a black eye, a crooked, bloody nose, and a broken Beater bat. Anna was stumbling around from a Jelly-leg Jinx cast by Roxanne, who looked as if her skin was covered in cornflakes. Rose's eyebrows had grown past her chin and had spouted a large mustache. France Jordan had only two fingers on each hand. Colin Creevey's feet was grossly enlarged by an Engorgement Charm. Albus was unconscious and covered in odd yellow spots. The Gryffindor Keeper, Samantha Wood, was badly singed by one of the enchanted Quaffles that had exploded. Blake's bat was repeatedly hitting him over the head, which was now the color of a bruised peach. Simon's robes were ripped and his broom was in pieces. Jo's toenails had grown through her trainers and her fingernails had grown at least six inches. Hans was vomiting slugs and trying in vain to stay on his broom with his knees backwards. Yolanda's arm flopped around as if there were no bones in it and her face was covered with flapping bat wings. Lily knew she must be a mess, with blood matting her hair and her robes filthy from her two falls. A stabbing pain in her wrist told her that she had broken it slowing her fall.

They were escorted to the hospital wing, where some of them were immediately patched up and others were given a closed-off bed. "I'm so sorry, Anna. This is all my fault."

"No it's not, stupid. This is no one's fault. Everything just got out of hand. If you have to blame someone it should be James. He started the fight. There was no permanent damage done, so it's fine." It was hard to convince herself of the truth in Anna's words, however, Lily thought as she looked around the room and saw all the injuries that had happened because of her. No, not because of you, because of _him_, she told herself firmly.

Her feelings of guilt and remorse increased as Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "I have never seen such a thing. You all should feel very, very ashamed of yourselves. Some of you are lucky that you are not being expelled. I will write to your parents to inform them of the disgrace their child... children... has inflicted upon them. Three hundred points from each House, and all of you will receive as many and as horrible detentions as you Head of House," she nodded to Neville and Professor Vector, "See fit to give you." Then she barked, "Potters, my office. Now."

"But, Professor..." protested Anna.

"You may come too, girl."

**AN: Dun dun dunnnnn...**

**Thought: *IMPORTANT: DON'T READ IF YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN FANATIC WHO THINKS HP IS EVIL* Isn't it absurd that people wanted to ban HP because it "promoted evil" and "led children to Satanism" and was "anti-Christian"? I have lots of reasons that I could talk about all day but I want to know what my all-important readers think. -Hopefully none of you misinterpreted this as me agreeing with above insane people who think HP is evil. I am against them and my reasons are arguements against their insanity.-**


	9. Lessons Learned

**AN: Thanks to Aspieturtle for responding to my thought and agreeing with me. I'm very very very sorry about how long it took to update. I was procrastinating and then school started. So I'm sorry. I'll try to get the next chapter up faster. No promises though.**

Lily, Anna, and James followed McGonagall as she hurried to her office, casting anxious glances at each other. "Password?" asked the stone gargoyle.

"Out of my way," ordered McGonagall. The gargoyle nodded and allowed them to pass. Evidently, that was the password. "Sit down." She pointed her wand and three hard, wooden chairs appeared. Even James didn't dare speak. None of them imagined that she could get that angry. "Now, I must say that I never expected such a thing out of either of you." She pointed at James and Lily, who exchanged glares. "Starting a free-for-all duel during a Quidditch practice. Though why two teams booked the pitch for the same time is beyond me."

"It wasn't our fault! Someone..." cried Lily, but was interrupted by Professor McGonagall.

"Be as it may. I am very disappointed with you both. Luckily, your Heads have decided to be merciful and will not to expel you. Yes, Mr. Potter?" She arched her eyebrows.

"Lily's right; it wasn't her fault."

"_Her_ fault! Of course not," snorted Anna.

"Silence, Miss Timberlake." She turned back to James. "Do you mean to imply that someone else is at fault?"

"Yeah, I think I do. I think I mean to imply that I have something to confess." He ran his fingers through his hair, as if to say that he was still an arrogant bighead, even if he was confessing something. "I erased Ravenclaw from the schedule so that France would think that we were the ones booking the pitch, not them, so that we could confront and beat Lily. Little coward that she is, I didn't think it would be hard."

"Didn't think!" said Lily scathingly. "No, I suppose you wouldn't. You just rush into everything head on like a true idiotic Gryffindor. Actually planning would be out of the question."

"Stop. I will not tolerate this constant fighting. Either settle you differences _peacefully_ or stay out of each other's way until time sorts things out. But be warned; the next time this kind of violence breaks out because of you, you'll be immediately expelled. Both of you."

"But Professor, isn't that a bit unfair?" protested Anna. "You can't expel Lily. She hasn't done anything wrong."

"Your loyalty is admirable, but instead of arguing with me, your time would be better spent helping Lily avoid conflicts with her family."

"Yes, Professor."

"Now, James, you may go. I would like to have a word with Miss Potter." Smirking, James left, no doubt pleased to have avoided further punishment. "I want you to know, Lily, that I don't blame you, nor am I angry about your Sorting. Your parents will be angry, however, when they find out what has happened."

"Er, Professor? Will anyone be seriously injured because of me?"

"You need to stop blaming yourself. You are all equally guilty. And no, I do not believe any permanent damage was done tonight. Most of you only needed simple remedies for broken bones, bruises and such. Roxanne's skin will clear after about two days, Miss Jordan's fingers can most likely be regrown, your brother will be fine after a week in the hospital wing, Mr. Pfieffer's vomiting will stop eventually and Madam Pomfrey will find a way to fix his knees, and Ms. Bauer's bones will be regrown by morning. If I were you, I'd worry more about the Howler that's surely on its way from Southeast England tomorrow morning. Good night." At this clear dismissal, Lily and Anna went back to their dormitory without going to dinner. Anna's stomach grumbled constantly, but Lily was too upset to think about eating.

They sat curled up on Lily's bed, looking at a photograph of Lily's family reunion two years ago. It was obvious that the people had moved since the picture was taken: Lily was pointedly ignoring everyone and James was as far away from her as possible. Then, to distract herself from her own worries, Lily asked, "What was in that letter that made you cry on Monday?"

"I didn't cry," said Anna indignantly, but her eyes glistened with tears.

"Yes, you did. Something about that mysterious family of yours made you cry."

"Can I trust you not to tell anyone?"

Now it was Lily's turn to be indignant. "Of course. Do you really think I'd sell your secret?"

"Well, no. But I had to make sure I could trust you." And so Lily learned about family feuds and unforgiving grandparents and tragic accidents and misplaced blame and crises that shook the foundation of already strained family ties to their limit. "And so my brother and sister-in-law are going to America to make up with the rest of my family so I can't go home for Christmas or Easter and I'll be all alone here."

"No you won't!" cried Lily with a sudden fierceness that alarmed Anna. "I'll stay with you."

"But you don't have to... for me..."

"Anna. You are my best friend. I will stay with you no matter what. I swear." And those words sealed an intertwined fate more securely then any Unbreakable Vow ever could.

"You're too nice to me. And your family will be madder then ever, with the Quidditch incident, and now staying for Christmas. I don't want you to cause a family split for me."

"You worry too much."

"Yes, I worry about you, and you worry too much about things you have no control over. Let's talk about something else. This won't cheer you up. What books have you read recently?" And so they started another book-related discussion that lasted until the other girls came up to bed. They woke up before dawn on Sunday, while the others slept, and walked down to the edge of the Forbidden Forest in the morning mist, shining golden from the rising sun.

"Wow. Another heart to heart talk. We seem to be having quite a lot of those lately," remarked Lily wryly.

Anna laughed. "So how do you feel about this?" she asked in her best psychologist impersonation. There was a pause, and then: "Do you really mean what you said last night? You know, about staying with me."

"Of course I do. Don't be so insecure and having low self-esteem, okay? You're amazing. Just relax. Actually, no. You know what? I hate you. I never want to talk to you again," said Lily sarcastically.

"Uh-huh. Because I would really believe that."

"See? You're way better when you stop getting all mopey and start enjoying life and not worrying about what anyone else says. It's a better way to live," advised Lily wisely.

"Says the one who freaks when people are hurt because her brother started a fight."

"Shut up. Better then the one who panics because she isn't the best in the class at one stinking little charm. I mean, I know we're supposed to be smart 'cause we're Ravenclaws but that's overkill. Touche'"

"Touche' indeed. I surrender. Truce?"

"Truce," agreed Lily, lowering an invisible sword.

"Reckon they've started breakfast yet?"

"We can check, but I don't fancy being around when the post owls bring me a Howler. What d'you say we sneak in the kitchen and nick some food. No one'll ever know. The house-elves would be more then happy to feed us."

"Do you know how to get to the kitchens?"

"Sure. We use the map. The door is a painting of a fruit basket. When we tickle the pear it becomes a handle."

"How do you know this stuff?"

"My aunt Hermione is a house-elf rights fanatic. She told me about the time she visited the kitchens and tried to convince the elves to want freedom."

"And?"

"They didn't, of course. They practically chased her out. Let's go."

"We are always pleased to serve, good misses," squeaked a female house-elf holding out a tray of toast. Lily realized how hungry she was after missing dinner last night. Anna, who had known she was starving, proceeded to stuff her mouth with sausage. Meanwhile, Lily was staring down an obscenely old house-elf with large amounts of white hair growing from his ear.

"Young mistress may please herself, but it pains poor old Kreacher to see her with nasty Mudblood slime."

"Kreacher," said Lily kindly but firmly, "I thought Dad forbid you from saying the word 'Mudblood'."

"In my noble master's presence, yes, but at Hogwarts I may say as I please," croaked Kreacher.

"Yes, but I ask that you please refrain from saying 'Mudblood' wherever you may be. Need I remind you that as your master's daughter, your obedience extends to me?" requested Lily in that same tone. Anna wondered why she was merely asking nicely if she could just order him to shut up.

"No, young mistress. Kreacher will obey the children of his master."

"Thank you, Kreacher." He bowed to her as they left, while throwing the occasional dirty look in Anna's direction.

As they made their way around the lake eating their early breakfast, Anna asked, "What is up with him?"

"Kreacher? He's just old and grumpy. He's served three different people. One was a pureblood mania family, one hated him, and my dad's the other. He hates Muggle-borns. Don't take it personally." The morning mist solidified into fog as the friends walked back towards the Forbidden Forest. Suddenly, a large owl alighted on Lily's shoulder, carrying a shaking red envelope. Lily untied it nervously and the owl flew off. "Oh no," she whispered, voice trembling. Everything she had ever heard about Howlers ran through her head, especially the consequences for ignoring one. Reluctantly, she opened the letter, smoking at its corners by now. The tirade that followed was so loud that Anna, who had grown up listening to rock music at ear-damaging volume, cringed and covered her ears.

_"LILY POTTER! HOW DARE YOU ATTACK YOUR BROTHER LIKE THAT! YOU NEVER __SHOULD'VE DONE SUCH A THING, NO MATTER HOW BADLY YOU WERE PROVOKED. YOU ARE VERY LUCKY THAT I PREVENTED YOUR GRANDMUM FROM SENDING HER OWN HOWLER. IT WOULD'VE BEEN A THOUSAND TIMES WORSE, AND YOU WOULD'VE DESERVED IT! THAT WAS UNEXEPTABLE BEHAVIOR AND YOU KNOW IT. IF I HEAR ANYTHING LIKE IT HAPPENING EVER AGAIN, YOU. ARE. COMING. HOME. AND I WILL LET MY MOTHER HAVE HER WAY WITH YOU. YOUR FATHER IS FURIOUS AT YOU! BENDING RULES IS ONE THING, BUT ALL-OUT VIOLENCE IS ANOTHER THING COMPLETELY. ESPECIALLY AGIAINST YOUR OWN FAMILY! I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO ASHAMED OF ANY OF MY CHILDREN AND I NEVER WANT TO AGAIN. THAT WAS A RIDICULOUS ACT OF STUPIDITY, AND I EXPECTED BETTER FROM MY RAVENCLAW DAUGHTER. NEVER DO ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY AS BAD AGAIN!"_ And then the letter burst into flame.

"So, that's your lovely mum?" teased Anna.

"Yeah, that's her," said Lily dully. "She's usually much nicer then this, though. But I guess she's right; I do deserve it."

"Never say that. What happened was no one's fault, least of all yours. Okay, it was James', but as he's your brother, you can be the one to blame him."

"Stop defending me! It was my fault and you know it."

"Listen, it's my job as your friend to stick up for you, even when you don't stick up for yourself. Especially then. You'd better get used to it. I'll always stick with you, no matter how horrible you consider yourself. And besides, as a Ravenclaw, I expect more intelligence from you then this." But the laughter in her tone told Lily that she wasn't serious about the last bit. She smiled in spite of her foul mood.

"You don't really mean that."

"Nope, not one bit." Lily snorted at the obvious sarcasm. "But I did mean what I said about always sticking with you. You need me to get you to lighten up and live a little. I've said it before and I'll say it again: you worry too much about what you can't control. Remember, I'm in Ravenclaw. Therefore I'm smart. Therefore you should listen to me."

"Somehow I just don't grasp your superior logic. Could it be because it's not that superior?" Anna smiled. She had succeeded. "Hang on, d'you hear laughter?"

"Besides us, you mean? Dunno. Let's shut up for a minute and find out." And they did indeed hear laughter, coming from the forest. Lily glanced at Anna. They both nodded and edged into the trees.

The fog shifted for a moment, revealing a small clearing and three figures sitting on fallen logs, joking with each other. "Hey, guys! Come over here. And Lily, your mum has an impressive voice if she can shout that loudly for three Howlers without losing her voice."

"Nessa! Way to be discreet. I don't suppose you've ever heard of this little thing called _tact_," said the unmistakable voice of Scorpius Malfoy. Anna and Lily sat down next to him.

"So, what's up with you?" asked Lily. "I bet you all know what's up with me."

"The sky," said Zach gravely. Everyone groaned.

"That was funny about the first two times. Since then it's gotten old. Extremely old. To answer your question, not much. We normal people lead boring lives. We don't turn entire Houses and their families against us in a single day," Nessa grinned impishly.

"Nope, you're right, Nessa. The whole lot are already against us. They don't need any turning."

"_Zach! _If you can't say something at least moderately intelligent, say nothing at all."

"I thought it was up to the Ravenclaws here to say the intelligent things."

"I'm sorry. They never shut up and I'm stuck with it. But never mind about us," Scorpius added, as Nessa and Zach rolled their eyes. "How does it feel to have the whole of Gryffindor House plus McGonagall hating you to the tips of your brooms?"

"You already know, so why don't you tell us?" retorted Lily. Anna chuckled.

"Ah, but you're the first non-pure bloods to experience it. Usually Gryffindors love Mudbloods," remarked Scorpius wisely. The reaction was almost instant.

"MALFOY!" snapped Nessa, holding her wand threateningly, her other hand grasping his collar. "You. Are. Not. To. Act. Like. An. Elitist. Jerk! Ever!" She shoved him hard enough that he hit the wet ground with a thud. Zach sighed. He was used to her freaking out on Scorpius when he accidentally said something derogatory about non-purebloods. To be fair, it really wasn't his fault. His parents were notoriously anti-Muggle.

Anna rolled her eyes. "Oh, honestly. Lily, calm down. It's not the end of the world." Lily had tensed, ready to spring into motion and curse Scorpius. Reluctantly, she sat down, still glaring at him. Sensing the danger if Lily was allowed to remain within shouting distance with Scorpius, Anna suggested, "Let's go back up to the castle." Lily grunted and followed her friend back inside.

She took out the map. "Let's go check this out," she said, pointing to what looked like a secret passageway. "It goes out of the castle." But before they could put the plan into action, Yolanda came around the corner, breathless.

"Professor Vector told me to give tell you that you, Lily, have detention all next week starting tonight at five o' clock with Professor Weasley. Anna, you also have detention all next week at the same time with Professor Slughorn." Lily and Anna exchanged glances. Those were their least favorite teachers and the ones that would really make it punishment. Why did Professor Vector have to be so smart? Lily dreaded the evening and wished that there was a spell to slow down time, and speed it up during the detention.

After waiting for Yolanda to leave, she looked at the map again. "We might as well make the most of our last hours of freedom. Let's go." Anna shook her head, smiling wryly, but followed Lily into the dark hole behind the mirror.


End file.
